Let’s dig beneath the surface of game a little and look at what made it so unique and enjoyable. MOO2 allows for large scale space combat, completely designable and unique ships and, for the expert, the ability to create your own race.

MOO2, as it is affectionately known, is turn-based just like Civ and included elements of diplomacy, but that is where the resemblance ends. A very popular 4E franchise is the Civilization series by Sid Meier. You also have (most importantly) the ability to advance your group by improving abilities or gaining a new technology.

The idea is simple: you and several other groups start out with a certain amount of resources to exploit and the ability to explore, fight, and colonize other areas. Master of Orion 2: Battle at Antares is a 4E game, which (for those of you who haven’t played this particular genre) stands for “Explore”, “Expand”, “Exploit” and “Exterminate”. Microprose certainly tried harder, creating a masterful plot with intrigue, poltics, and epic battles between space fleets. They knew that no one would be impressed with the blocky and pixelated suggestions of figures that graphics in those days provided, and so they tried to create better stories and better gameplay. I tend to think that in those days they tried a little harder. Graphics were primitive and processors slow, but gamers gamed and we had fun. Back in hoary old 1996, games were very different.